The 49ers’ Biggest Post-NFL Draft Roster Needs As They Target Cowboys All Time Pro Wide Receiver Who Will Join On Permanent Deal
If Leonard Floyd doesn’t produce for the 49ers, they’re in trouble.
The 49ers’ first-round selection was a luxury pick, considering they took a wide receiver when they didn’t need one just yet.
Ricky Pearsall could help the 49ers tremendously down the line, but they still have major needs at defensive end, defensive tackle and interior offensive line, according to Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano.
“The 49ers are banking on veterans to replace edge rusher Chase Young and defensive tackle Arik Armstead,” Manzano writes. “Time will tell if the rotation of Leonard Floyd, Drake Jackson and Yetur Gross-Matos is enough to assist Nick Bosa. The 49ers tend to make it work on the offensive line, but they’re lacking talent on the inside.”
Most analysts wouldn’t consider defensive end a position of need for the 49ers, but it is. Because if Leonard Floyd doesn’t produce for the 49ers, they’re in trouble. And he’ll be 32 in September, so it’s certainly possible that he’ll fall off. And if even if he maintains his pass-rush production, he can’t set an edge against the run, which was the 49ers’ biggest issue on defense last season. So don’t be surprised if the 49ers make another trade deadline move for an edge player like they did last season when they traded for Chase Young.
Defensive tackle also is another sneaky need for the 49ers, considering Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins both are older players on the down side of their careers, and their backups are Kevin Givens and Jordan Elliott, who are nothing special.
Interior offensive line seems like less of a need after the 49ers drafted two guards — Dominick Puni and Jarrett Kingston. I’d argue that offensive tackle is a much bigger need, because Trent Williams will be 36 next season, and if he misses more than a few games, the 49ers might miss the playoffs.
Former 49ers quarterback Trey Lance still faces an uncertain NFL future, but one thing about his tumultuous journey became more clear Wednesday.
The Dallas Cowboys will decline to pick up the fifth-year option on Lance’s contract for 2025, ESPN’s Todd Archer reported, citing a source, noting that picking up the option would have cost Dallas a fully-guaranteed $22.4 million.
The 49ers drafted Lance No. 3 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, and his tenure with San Francisco was marred by injuries before being cut short by Brock Purdy’s ascension as a starter. Before the start of the 2023 NFL regular season, the 49ers traded Lance to the Cowboys for a 2024 fourth-round draft pick, which the team used to select safety Malik Mustapha at No. 124 overall last week.
Lance appeared in just eight games (four starts) over two seasons with the 49ers, and he arrived in Dallas immediately behind Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush on the depth chart. The 23-year-old was inactive for all 17 of the Cowboys’ games during the 2023 NFL season, and now he’ll compete with Rush for the Dallas backup job this summer.
